


Can't bake them all

by IndigoDream



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Nailed It! (TV) Fusion, Background Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Background Simon Lewis/Jace Wayland, F/F, Fluff, Izzy-centric, This is mostly an "Izzy doesn't know how to bake fic"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2020-04-07 11:54:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19084510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IndigoDream/pseuds/IndigoDream
Summary: Isabelle Lightwood doesn't know how to bake, but that doesn't stop her from trying. When her brothers sign her up for the Netflix hit show "Nailed It!" she decides to go to prove them she can actually do this. It can't be that hard to follow a recipe and make decorations, right? Little does she know, the whole day of challenge is about to become a bit more complicated when she meets the guest judge.





	Can't bake them all

**Author's Note:**

> Hi y'all!
> 
> This is my first fanfic in literal years, and I do intend, at some point, to write the Malec counterpart, because its a damn shame there is barely none of it. Anyway, as the tags say, this is very Izzy-centric, although we see a lot of Jace.
> 
> If y'all wanna chat, come find me at @holygayrchie on tumblr!

Barging into the living room of the apartment she shared with her brothers, Isabelle Lightwood, brilliant medical student on her way to become the best forensic pathologist New York had ever known, held up her phone with an unimpressed stare for her siblings. 

“Which one of you signed me up for it?” 

A confused glance between her brothers had her sighing and rolling her eyes. 

“Nailed it. Which one of you two traitors signed me up for it?” 

Jace averted his eyes immediately, while Alec had the decency to look slightly ashamed. She grabbed a cushion from the couch and threw it at her brothers. 

“How could you! I’m a perfectly capable baker.”

She ignored the level look Alec directed at her. She didn’t need her brother’s opinion on her culinary talent, thank you very much. She was confident in her ability to pull off anything, as long as she put her mind to it. No matter that he was a very talented chef who had just recently gotten the highly coveted position of head chef at The Institute, an up and coming restaurant. 

Izzy had never been good at cooking. She had never managed to understand how Alec mastered the kitchen, how he had the patience for it. Although, she did enjoy baking, despite her brothers’ complaints. So what if her desserts were not always the prettiest? They always tasted good. Somewhat. There might have been one time she had accidentally put salt instead of sugar in her cupcakes. And that time where she had put cornstarch instead of flour. But she was determined to blame Alec for that. If her brother stopped putting away everything in containers and left them in their bags as was intended, she wouldn’t have so many mixups. 

“The containers have labels on them,” had protested Alec when she told him this after her fourth mixup. 

Even after she had gotten her own cupboard worth of supplies, which had not been too hard to do since she just had to empty Jace’s “Interesting snacks and other mishaps” (his name, not hers) cupboard. She had ignored the indignation from her brother when she had done that, choosing instead to focus on the inner certainty she had she would never fail another dessert from now on. 

That had been a gross overstatement. She kept on baking anyway. 

“Iz, the last time you made a cake the fire department came over because our neighbors thought there was a fire from the smell,” said Jace, and she smacked him in the face with the pillow again. 

“I forgot the cake alright, it wasn’t a big deal! And the firemen are lovely gentlemen. I’m pretty sure they came because they recognized the address and the blond one has a crush on Alec.” 

“His name is Andrew and he doesn’t have a crush on me,” muttered Alec.

“He totally does! He keeps making eyes at you each time he comes, and he is always the last one to leave!” 

“You do realize that being on a first-name basis with about every firemen of the local department is a pretty telling fact about your supposed baking abilities, right? They have been here six times in the last 2 months. At some point they are going to ban you from even looking at an oven again. I’m pretty sure the neighbors have the fire department on speed dial because of you.” 

She made an affronted noise and picked up the pillow she was hitting Jace with to hit her other brother. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be supportive of people trying to learn your craft?” 

“Oh, trust me, this is me being supportive,” he said with a snort. “Plus, this might actually help you get better. There will be professionals that can stop you from burning down the building.” 

“Hopefully.” Jace added with a laugh. 

Izzy pouted slightly. She loved Nailed It, found the show hilarious to watch, and on Alec and Jace’s days off they would often spend part of the evening together to watch it while eating take out. But she was keenly aware however that she was maybe a bit of a disaster in the kitchen, no matter how much she loved baking, or how much she protested against her brothers’ remarks. She was not looking forward to being possibly ridiculed on a popular baking show, even if it was the premise of it. 

She sighed heavily and slumped on the couch, Jace scrambling to let her take as much space as she wanted. She ended up with her head on her adopted brother’s shoulder and looked again at her phone, where the email from the Netflix Nailed It team was still glaringly bright. She handed the phone to her brothers.

“How did you two even end up sending my name?” 

Jace answered as Alec read the email. “Remember that night you got called in at work when we were watching it? Well, we got kind of drunk and we ended looking up how to submit someone for the show, and I guess we were on your computer too. Things get a bit blurry but since it’s your email account I’m pretty sure that’s what happened. Anyway, we sent them a video and a picture of you making Alec’s birthday cake.”

They all winced at the memory. She still didn’t know how that many eggshells had ended up in the batter. And she would keep blaming the recipe for the frosting mishaps; if it had been clearer she would have put powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar. 

“And we kind of forgot about it since? But I guess you were good enough to be selected.” 

“You don’t have to say yes, Iz.” Alec laid a comforting hand on her shoulder and she looked at him, saw the concern in his hazel eyes. “Like Jace said, it was a drunk decision on our part. We really weren’t expecting an answer or anything.”

“Nah. I’ll do it. It’ll be fun right? And they are filming in New York, so you guys can come with me to the studio!” 

She got a hug from both her brothers, throwing them a dazzling smile.

“And anyway, after going behind my back and throwing me under the bus like that, it’s only fair that you guys eat my desserts. I gotta get ready!” 

The happy looks on their faces fell and she laughed at their expressions as she walked to the kitchen. This was definitively going to be fun.  
\---

This was not fun, this was not fun at all. She stood in front of the doors of the building where the Nailed It studio was located, and she was freaking out. 

“Oh my god Jace, what if I can’t do this? This is crazy, I should never have done this, I can’t do this, I’m a terrible baker. I’ve nearly poisoned you a hundred times! I’m going to end up killing the judges accidentally, I’m going to burn down the building!” 

Jace groaned slightly at how tight her sister was holding onto him as she shook him relentlessly. He desperately wished Alec had not had a work emergency and could be here to handle their sister’s freakout. He was much better at this than Jace could ever hope to be. 

“Iz, calm down, you’re going to be fine! It’s just a show. And they won’t let you burn down the building, alright? Remember that guy who forgot his cakes in the oven all through the final selfie? They didn’t let him burn down the kitchen. It’ll be fine.” 

“But what if I don’t know how to use their fancy kitchen stuff? Alec refuses to buy a stand mixer! I knew I should have bought one anyway!” 

“Isabelle Sophia Lightwood. You graduated top of your class at Columbia when you were only 19. You were top of your class all through medical school. Your residency went so well your supervisors said they had rarely seen a brighter student. Your fellowship is expected to be it completed in a year. You are the smartest person around here, I’m pretty sure of that. If you can’t figure out how a stand mixer works, I have serious concerns about your health.” 

She smiled weakly and hugged him tightly. “Thanks,” she whispered softly. 

“And seriously Izzy, you’re going to kick ass alright? It’s only one day. Plus, you always said you wanted to hang out with Magnus Bane! You get to hang out with the judge on your favorite baking show. So, you might mess up a little,” he smiled encouragingly, “but if you’re bad enough you get some help! Plus, Ragnor Fell is literally a genius in the culinary world. You’ve heard Alec’s rant about it enough, no? Think of how jealous he will be when you come back.” 

“I think he might be more jealous about me meeting Magnus…” 

They both grinned. Their brother’s crush on the show’s host was an extremely well documented topic and they loved to poke fun at Alec for it.

“Hey, if you manage to do something even slightly gay, that’ll be a win, right?” 

She laughed softly. “Maybe I’ll mess up the colors of a cake and make it come out blue and pink, with a hint of purple. Gotta represent the bis out there.”

They bumped their fists together with another shared grin. They had both come out to another at the same time, without meaning to, but it had never been a problem for them. It had been a bit more difficult when they had told their parents, but their mother had come around after the divorce. Now, she asked about their love life at every occasion she got. 

“Alright, let’s head in,” he said as he pulled the door open.

A security guard looked up as they entered, and after showing their IDs, he allowed them him, telling them to go straight and then left twice to find the contestants’ lounge. After a quiet snort, they followed his instructions and found themselves in a well decorated room with a couple of couches and some snacks on a low table. There were already two women sitting on the couch, talking to one another with quiet intensity. 

“Hi!” Izzy waved slightly. “I’m Isabelle, are you guys the other contestants?” 

The two women strayed apart quickly, the blonde one getting her slight blush under control as she got up. “Hey, yes! I’m Helen. And this is Aline. You came a long way for this?” 

Izzy shook their hands with a smile. “No, we live around here actually. My brother escorted me in here. You two?” 

“I’m from Los Angeles,” smiled Helen slightly, “but I’m moving here soon for work, so I took off a little early, to match with the show’s schedule.” 

“I’m from here, although I travel a lot for work,” shrugged Aline with a casual smile. 

The three women started chatting and Jace was about to tell his sister he was leaving when the door opened and a lanky young man walked in, headset in place and cheery attitude fixed on his face. The contestants turned to him and he smiled. 

“Hi guys! I’m Simon Lewis, I’ll be in charge of you guys for the day. If you watch the show, you might recognize me as the guy who brings the trophy and all other accessories throughout the show. Or as the guy Magnus decided not to remember the name of, that’s also a thing. I’m going to take you on a quick tour of the kitchens, don’t hesitate to ask any questions through the tour, after that we will meet Magnus and Ragnor, as well as the guest judge, but remember that they’ll be introduced to you on the show too so if you want a hug or anything, keep it for the cameras!” 

Izzy chuckled lightly as Simon finally took a deep breath and she gripped Jace’s arm, whispering in his ear. “He’s cute, no?” She knew her brother had a weakness for brunette with bubbly personality, although he refused to admit it. And they had all, at one moment or another, commented on Simon as they watched the show, and Jace had remarked more than once on his physique. 

Simon noticed him when Jace grumbled and rolled his eyes, pushing back his blond hair with one hand. 

“Oh, are you accompanying one of the contestant? You must be Isabelle’s plus one, the security told us that she had brought in a guest. If you want, you can come on the tour with us and meet the judges, but after that you’ll either have to leave or come back here. We have a small screen that’ll show you the evolution of the competition. You can’t be on set though, sorry.” 

“Does he ever stop talking?” 

Isabelle jabbed Jace in the ribs for his whispered comment, although she doubted Simon had heard him, as he was busy answering Helen’s question about the guest judge. 

“Would it kill you to be nice to someone? Simon’s gonna be showing us around, and you’ll get to see your crush up close and personal,” she smirked. “Why don’t you enjoy the opportunity?”

He elbowed her back and rolled his eyes at her, but he didn’t say anything back so she took it as a win. 

“Alright, contestants, plus one, let me show you the set, and I’ll explain along how this is going to happen.” 

The tour of the kitchens was extremely amusing for Isabelle, who managed to push her brother into Simon twice, playing up her clumsiness with an angelic smile and a sorry face. Aline and Helen watched all this with amused, if slightly intrigued, faces, and soon joined Izzy in her quest to force Jace into being sociable. They shared grins and giggles as they watched Simon smiles upwardly at Jace with each bump. 

The explanations ran quite smoothly and she breathed with more ease as she took her marks in the new environment. Now that the short lived panic was gone, she was excited beyond measures. Aline and Helen were interesting and she enjoyed their company as they visited the studio. She noticed with a grin the looks they stole towards one another and found it quite adorable. Plus, she resonated, she might actually have a decent chance at winning this if her two contestants were busy making eyes at each other. 

Simon clapped his hands at the end of the tour, and his ever present smile was infectious. 

“Are you guys ready to meet Magnus and Ragnor? Our guest judge should also be there already, although last I heard she was running late, so we never know.” 

Izzy exchanged an excited glance with the two other women and gripped her brother’s arm. She simply couldn’t believe she was about to meet Magnus Bane and Ragnor Fell, two names that had become a fixture in their home. 

“He is a master of pastry Izzy,” Alec had declared one evening when they were watching and his words were slurred together slightly, a testament to how much he had had to drink that night. “His chocolate work, fuck, it’s the best thing in the entire world. I would kill to eat one of his dessert, I swear. And look at Magnus, look at him! His arms, his hands!” He had put his head on his sister’s shoulder with a sigh. “He’s so beautiful.” 

Izzy chuckled a bit at the memory as they followed Simon to a door on the other side of the studio. Jace threw her a questioning glance, and she only had time to whisper a soft “Alec must be livid he missed this” before Simon pushed the door open.

“Magnus, Ragnor, the contestants are here to meet you guys!” 

“Then I believe you picked the wrong crowd,” came Magnus Bane’s silky voice as the man himself appeared, “I believe we only have three contestants for each episode, Sherwin.” 

Izzy had assumed Magnus always played up his clothing and personality for the cameras, but seeing him this close, behind the scenes, she started to understand he might have actually been toning it down. The nails of his hands were painted a deep blue, which contrasted with his glass of what she could only assume was orange juice, and his fingers were adorned with a couple of heavy rings. His hair was streaked with the same blue as his nails, and he was truly dressed to impress. 

Simon was about to answer when Ragnor Fell came into view. He was older than Magnus, but he swatted at his co-judge with childish pettiness. 

“Oh stop torturing the poor boy, the cameras aren’t here. And you know the contestants are allowed to bring someone to support them.”

Magnus swatted back at Ragnor with a pout, which made Izzy giggle a bit to herself. Even Jace relaxed slightly next to her. 

“So, who are the contestants and who is the intruder?” 

Izzy walked forward, a bright smile on her painted lips as she extended her hand. “I’m Isabelle Lightwood, Jace came here to support, like the nice older brother he is.” 

“More like you threatened me and Alec only escaped because work called him in.” Jace shook Magnus’ and Ragnor’s hands with his trademark charming smile. “Though, it didn’t take much convincing, we all love your show.” 

Ragnor smiled at the praise. “As you should.” 

“You are the Jace that sent Isabelle’s submission!” Simon exclaimed from his corner of the room where he was serving himself a glass of water. “I knew your name sounded familiar. Not a lot of Jace around those parts.” 

“You were the one reading the submissions?” Jace looked halfway to mortified. Izzy knew he had not much memory of what he had sent originally. 

“With some help but I picked Isabelle! The submission was quite funny actually.” 

Jace smiled a bit and, after checking with his sister, went to chat with Simon. Aline and Helen introduced themselves to Magnus and Ragnor, and they were all starting to talk with one another when a knock was heard and the door opened. 

“Magnus, I’m so sorry, I lost track of time, I was at the gallery and I—“ 

The woman who had just entered stopped herself just before she collided with Izzy, her red hair flapping around her at the sudden motion. She looked at the taller woman with a shocked expression, and a blush made its way on her cheeks. She looked like the prettiest, most perfect doll Isabelle had ever seen, and she couldn’t help the grin that overtook her features. 

“Biscuit! Don’t worry,” Magnus said, coming to hug her quickly, “I am well aware of your artistic temperament and your ability to get lost in your own head. Let me make the introductions. Clary Fray, our guest judge for the day, the contestants, Isabelle, Helen and Aline.”

Clary waved at the three other women with a happy smile. “Hi! Sorry for the delay. I hope you guys know how excited I am to be here. I’m sure we are going to have a lot of fun today.” 

Although she did a valiant effort at watching them all, her eyes kept flickering back to Izzy, who grinned once again, flipping her hair behind her smoothly. She heard Jace snort behind her.

“Pleasure to meet you. Are you a baker like Ragnor?” 

She could almost hear Alec spluttering of indignation at her flippant tone about one of his culinary heroes. She had other things in her head at the moment though, and none of them concerned her brother in any way. Rather, they all could be resumed by the image of the gorgeous woman in front of her. Clary Fray. Where had she heard that name before? 

“Oh no, nothing like that. I’m actually an—“ she stopped herself as she saw Simon shaking his head, “right, the show. Well, I guess you’ll know soon enough what I do! But I’m not a baker, that’s for sure.” 

“Me neither, not really. My brothers actually signed me up for this,” she nodded in Jace’s direction. “One of the traitors. The other had a work emergency, but I have a suspicion he faked so he wouldn’t have to meet his personal heroes. He is a bit of a fan of the show. So am I, but I never expected to actually be here.”

“I totally get that! I’ve loved the show since it first aired, and it helps that one of my best friend,” there she pointed at Simon, “works here, but I’ve also known Magnus for a while now too. I never thought they would actually ask me to come be a guest judge.”

Jace joined them at this point, introducing himself quickly before saying, “I’m pretty sure you would have preferred any other episode. My sister might actually poison you guys.” 

“And that’ll be your fault for signing me up.”

Clary laughed at their antics, a soft sound that made Izzy’s heart flutters. They continued to chat lightly for a few more minutes, before Simon announced that it was time the contestants go get ready, as their introductions were to be filmed before the show started. Saying a quick goodbye to the three judges, they followed Simon back to the contestants’ lounge. 

Echoing her earlier words, Jace grinned at her. “She’s cute, no?”

His sister tried his hardest to pretend she didn’t know what he was saying, trying to keep her face blank. “Who do you mean?”

“Clary,” he answered with an easy smile. “She’s really cute. And I’m pretty sure you noticed, I’ve never seen you so extensively rearrange your hair.” 

She puffed at her brother and pushed at his shoulder. “Shut up, don’t think I didn’t notice you flirting.”

Jace grinned but didn’t deny it. 

\---

The short introductions done and filmed, it was time for the contestants to get on the set. Izzy hugged Jace tightly and made him promise to stay there until the end before she joined Helen and Aline. They shared a grin and walked out on their cue, joining the judges with a happy smile. 

Magnus stood in the center, the expensive royal blue jacket he had been wearing earlier having been left behind in the judges’ lounge, and the smile on his face was warm but less welcoming than before. This wasn’t Magnus, the man who had exchanged witty remarks with Ragnor only an hour before, but rather Magnus Bane, ever popular host of the show. 

“Welcome, bakers, to Nailed It! We have with us as always Ragnor Fell, our very own little Picasso of patisserie, a wonder of the culinary world, on a loan to us from Britain.” 

Izzy grinned and couldn’t help to pipe up, “my brother is a huge fan, he loves your work!” 

Ragnor looked a bit surprised but smiled a bit. “Well, I suppose it’s quite nice to have fans.” 

“Why don’t you sign an autograph then? I’m sure Isabelle’s brother would be delighted. Samuel!” Magnus turned in the direction of Simon, who was already grinning and collecting a pen and some paper.

Ragnor accepted it begrudgingly. “I’m not one of those celebrities, Bane, I would like to remind you.” He signed the bit of paper anyway and gave it to Izzy, who grinned widely as she thanked him for it. 

“Moving on, we have today with us Clary Fray, or rather known as “Fairchild,” an extremely talented artist who regularly redecorates the streets of New York and whose paintings are among the most prized in the art world lately!” 

Izzy gasped a bit, trying to hide her reaction as she stared at the red-head, who had a warm smile as she explained that she was excited to be there. Not a month ago, the hospital’s children ward where Izzy volunteered had been repainted by Clary. It had been a beautiful mural too, with colors that kept a calming atmosphere but still stimulated the children.

Then dread started to settle in her, bit by bit, as she understood what Clary’s presence meant. They were going to have to make something really artistic. This did not bode well for her. 

“As you know, behind this door,” Magnus pointed to the door on his right with a flourish, his rings catching the light and sending dazzling glimmer, “is the first challenge, Baker’s Choice! The art world is a tough place, my darlings, but when I look at your bright faces, I know you’re all quite ready for this particular dance! And what a dance it will be, when you are making your own dancer cupcakes!” 

As he finished speaking, the doors swung open to revel three cupcakes, each topped by a small dancer, the colors varying from a vibrant red to a soft blue. Each dancer was in a different position, all of them incredibly complicated, and Izzy realized full force the impossibility of the task. 

As Magnus started explaining, she looked back to the judge and saw Clary watching her. Izzy tried to pay attention to what Magnus was saying, she really did, but Clary’s smile was simply too sweet, and she missed the running cue. Which meant she ended up with the cupcake that was topped by soft blue frosting and an intricately balanced dancer. 

“Isabelle, why did you chose this cupcake?” 

“It was the last one available?” She chuckled with the others. “I guess that’s what happens when you look at art.”

Clary looked away briefly, fighting back a blush, and Izzy grinned. Magnus laughed and asked the same question to Aline and Helen. After that, he started the timer and they ran to their stations. 

Isabelle was determined to do well. She was more than ready to win this challenge, even if only to impress the guest judge. With that mindset, she started reading the recipe and groaned inwardly at the vagueness of some of the instructions. She was definitely going to give the special Isabelle Lightwood touch then. 

\---

An hour later, she had just finished plating it when the buzzer sounded and they had to step away from their creations. Focusing had been… harder than she had imagined. Magnus had called to all of them a few times, and she had heard Clary laugh at something the two men had said, and there had gone the last bit of her focus. As she watched the judges go through Aline’s and Helen’s cupcakes, she noticed that theirs looked slightly less… black. She gave a worried glance at her cupcake and frowned before she shrugged. It was done now, no need to worry about it anymore. 

“So, Isabelle! Your station looked a bit like a war zone while you were baking,” Magnus remarked. “But you managed to pull something together, I believe. Why don’t you show us what you did?” 

Turning the plate, Izzy smiled as she said the catchphrase. The blue frosting was slowly melting off the still hot, definitely darker than the original chocolate cupcake, but she had done her best on the small figure in modeling chocolate. Sure, the colors were a bit off, and one of the arms was so long it rested on the frosting. But she did have a face!

“Oh my god,” came Ragnor’s slightly horrified whisper. 

“What happened to your lovely dancer, dear? It looks like she is dragging the weight of the world, and she certainly isn’t as happy as she is supposed to be.” 

“She is taking a break,” Izzy answered with a broad smile, not disconcerted by the anxious faces of the judges. “Everyone needs a break! Even artists.” 

She winked at Clary, who laughed softly.

“Then let’s taste it!” 

As soon as they started touching the cake, Izzy knew what was about to happen. This was Jace’s 24th birthday all over again. What became known as the Black Death around their home. Overbaked, almost ashen. The Pompeii of cakes. She looked on horrified as the judges carefully bit into the cupcakes, their faces instantly morphing from fearful curiosity to instant, absolute horror and disgust. 

Ragnor was still half way through drinking a water bottle Simon had brought in when Magnus started to speak again. 

“That was certainly an experience, that’s for sure. Thank you for your…” he hesitated and shrugged. “Thank you Isabelle.” 

So, maybe she was not going to impress Clary with her cooking skills. She was definitely not going to win that round, that was a certainty. It thus came without surprise when Ragnor announced that Aline had won the first challenge, and Simon brought the gift. She wasn’t quite disappointed, as she didn’t truly need or want any of the gifts that were offered on the show, but for her personal pride she still wished she had won. And maybe she really did want to impress Clary, damn it. 

They went through the little show to the second door before the break was called and Izzy turned, congratulating Aline on her win. She was just undoing her ponytail, letting her long curls rearrange themselves as she talked with the two other contestants, when Clary came up to her. The shy smile on her lips was different from the ones in front of the camera and Izzy liked that one better. It suited the redhead more.

“So, your brother was definitely onto something when he said you might poison us today, wasn’t he?” Her tone was light and teasing and her smile broadened at Izzy’s answering groan. 

“I really didn’t mean to! I was going to be focused and serve something edible, but then… Well, you happened, and you are quite possibly the most angelic woman I have ever seen in my entire life. And I am only human.” 

Clary blushed again, a very pretty sight indeed. “Are you saying I caused you to fail?” 

“I’m saying you are very distracting.” 

Clary was getting ready to answer when Jace barged in their conversation, Simon trailing behind him. 

“You did it again, you made the Black Death, I can’t believe it. Alec will laugh so much he’s going to have an aneurysm when I tell him.”

“That’s not how you get an aneurysm, you idiot. And I thought you weren’t allowed on set?” 

“Considering it’s lunch break,” Simon piped in with a bright smile, “I decided to bend the rules a bit. You guys wanna eat with Clary and I? I want to know what the hell is the Black Death, in as many details as you are willing to provide. Also I didn’t know you were a fan of Ragnor, Jace! I could have asked him to take a selfie with you or something! He would have grumbled but he absolutely loves meeting people who loves food as much as he does.”

Izzy laughed a bit. “You talk quite a lot, don’t you Simon? And I got the autograph for my other brother, the one who couldn’t come today. Not Jace. I’m pretty sure Jace and I are on par, cooking skill wise.”

Her brother rolled her eyes while Clary and Simon laughed a bit. They were leaving the stage to go to the contestants’ lounge when a hand stopped Izzy and she turned, giving a quizzical look to Magnus. 

“Sorry to catch you all off guard like this, but Isabelle, darling, there is just one more detail before you go, it will only take a few seconds?” 

She nodded and turned to the others. “I’ll meet you guys at the lounge as soon as I’m done.” 

They gave her a nod and she turned back to Magnus, who produced a tablet from a nearby table in a smooth motion. It seemed almost magical, and Izzy was sure there hadn’t been anything on that table moments ago. 

“I’m assuming you know your performance was…” he hesitated, clearly trying to find a delicate way of phrasing it.

“You can say disastrous Magnus, I’m really sorry you had to taste that.” She sighed with a shrug. “Is this about it? Oh god, are you sending me home already because it was so terrible? Did I poison Ragnor by accident? I did three years of med school I can probably help him!” 

“No, no, nothing of the sort,” soothed Magnus with a snort, “although I’m sure he will have nightmares about your cupcake for years to come.” 

She chuckled. “At least it will have been memorable?” 

“That it was, that’s for sure. Anyway, as I was saying, due to your performance, you will be the one who is given extra help in the second round. Simon and Ragnor decided that today’s help would be a phone call to the person of your choosing. To avoid you losing more time during the show, we would like to have the number of the person you might call. Do you know who you could call?” 

“Well, I could always call my brother. Not Jace,” she clarified as she saw Magnus’ surprised glance. “Alec, our older brother. He is the one who is a fan of Ragnor, actually.”

She took the tablet as he offered it and went on to say, “You should probably warn your brother that you might call him during the afternoon then.” He smiled warmly as she handed him back the device. “On a more personal note, you’ve made this episode much more interesting. I’ve never seen Biscuit blush quite so much in an hour.” 

Izzy’s smile was definitely self-satisfied as she answered. “Well, she has also made today a much more interesting prospect.” 

Magnus laughed a bit. “I’ll let you go back to your wooing then.” 

\---

Lunch with Simon and Clary had been a delight. Izzy had texted Alec to make sure he would answer if she called, but she hadn’t answered his string of question marks, too busy talking with Clary and learning more about her. Not only was she gorgeous, she was also fascinating to talk to, and the hour and a half of break flew by as she lost herself in the conversation. She found Simon quite funny too, and his friendship with Clary was definitely a long standing one. Jace, although a little colder and more closed off, also spent the time there to learn more about Simon. They had offered to Helen and Aline to join them, but the two women had quickly refused, choosing instead to have lunch just the two of them, away from their group. 

When she finally looked back at her phone, there was two missed calls from Alec, and about ten texts, ranging from question marks to her full name in all caps. She simply sent back a kissing emoji before going to the second interview of the day. Jace promised to stay to walk her back home and she went to the second task with a renewed energy, winking at Clary before the cameras turned back on to them. 

Still pink in the face, Clary gestured to the door where a large number two was marked. “Behind this door is one extremely impressive cake. It is truly a masterpiece, and would very well find its place in a museum. This three tiered cake gives a patissier’s dashing take on one of Monet’s best known series of paintings, the Water Lilies!” 

The doors swung open to reveal a massive, three tiered cake. The whole thing was decorated in a light blue and green, with swabs of lilac and soft pink, and curling around it were flowers and vines made of chocolate. It was truly beautiful, and Izzy could see the inspiration from the impressionist painter. She had no idea how in hell she was supposed to recreate it however. Next to her, Helen and Aline gasped, and they looked as alarmed as Isabelle felt. Ragnor went on to explain how to make the cake, and what was expected of them during this task, but Izzy was still blankly staring at the cake. _Maybe I’m really going to poison someone this time_ , she thought as the chef finished talking. 

“I know this may look tough, but I’m sure you will do great. And of course, each of you has a panic button, you only have to press it and Ragnor will come to you for three minutes and help as best as he can. And Isabelle, since your performance was…” here Magnus paused in his speech, “since you had such a hard time in the first challenge, we are giving you an extra helping hand. At any point during the challenge, you can call someone of your choosing to call and be given advice on how to proceed. Bakers, you have an hour and a half, good luck with your cake!” 

There was a second of silence, everyone frozen in shock, before Magnus laughed and made a shooing motion. “Go!”

Running to her station, Izzy forced her brain to kickstart into what her family called “Crazy Exam Mode.” She turned on the tablet, looked at the instructions quickly, and then she was off. An hour and a half wasn’t a long time to make this masterpiece, and while she knew the show was made to show failures, she wanted to give it her all. 

Despite her resolution to work hard on the cake, she couldn’t help to look up at Clary each time she laughed. The red-haired woman seemed completely at ease with Magnus and Ragnor, and Izzy could see that they had all known each other for a long time. She lost a couple of minutes like this, before she managed to refocus herself on the cake. 

Her cakes looked alright, she thought as she pulled them out of the oven and put them to cool in the blast chiller. (She had learnt some things while watching the show, despite her brothers’ opinion). Her buttercream… She gave a glance to the sad lump of blue frosting with a slight frown. It was not how frosting was supposed to look, she was vaguely aware of that. It was too lumpy, and the color was definitely off. It was more electric than the soft baby blue it was supposed to be. Well, some bright color never killed anyone, had it? And anyway, she didn’t have the time to redo the whole frosting if she wanted to do the decorations correctly. 

She was just starting to make the delicate chocolate lilies when Helen pressed her panic button. She couldn’t help but laugh as she saw Magnus do his dramatic routine as Ragnor puffed and made his way to the blonde woman. She saw Clary watching her and she winked, waving with one hand and inadvertently sending white chocolate flying around her. Clary puffed lightly, hiding her grin with a hand as Magnus glanced between the two of them, an amused smile dancing on his lips. 

Looking back down at her flowers, she swore under her breath as she noticed that they looked nothing like the one on the cake. Rather, they looked like blobs of white chocolate with some stray swirls of purple. She groaned and looked at the time on the tablet next to her, freezing a bit as she realized she only had thirty minutes left to finish up. She tried again with the flowers but her frustration was building up and she forced herself to calm down. 

Turning her eyes upwards again, she saw Clary look at her with worry in her forest green eyes. The beautiful guest judge mimed something discreetly while Magnus was busy exchanging witty comments with Ragnor. Izzy grinned when she got it and winked, before pressing her help button, Magnus immediately turning his attention to her and grabbing the tablet in front of him. He walked up to her smoothly, his smile bright. 

“So, Isabelle, who are you going to be calling today?” 

“My brother,” she answered as she started the video call with the host next to her. “He’s a chef, so I’m really hoping he can help me out!” 

The call took a few seconds to connect, but her brother’s head soon appeared. He was wiping his brow, hazel eyes looking off camera for a second or so before he turned his attention to his phone. Izzy had clearly caught him in the middle of the restaurant; she could see behind him a blur of people moving in and out of the screen. 

“Iz,” he exclaimed quickly, clearly not having noticed Magnus or the cameras around Izzy just yet, “why are you calling? Is there a problem? Do I need to—“ 

He had stopped abruptly in his movement and was staring at his screen, dumbfounded. 

“Well, hello there,” said Magnus with a slow grin, eyes alight with interest. “Isabelle forgot to mention her brother was even more beautiful than she is.” 

Alec’s eyes widened, and his cheeks slowly reddened. He stammered for a second before closing his mouth. 

“Alec, no time for flirting, I only have three minutes with you, so you are going to help me or I will make your birthday cake again, eggshells included!” 

With great reluctance, Alec turned his eyes to her and nodded. 

The next three minutes were filled with detailed questions, even more detailed answers. Izzy had a sneaking suspicion that Magnus was staying near her not only because that was how it usually went but rather because he had his eyes on Alec, if the frequent glances and blushes of her brother were any indication. 

The timer sounded loudly to announce the end of her call time and Magnus stole the tablet from her hands with a delighted grin. From watching the show before, she knew that usually he would just hang up the call, but this time he turned the camera to himself and winked at Alec through the screen. 

“Well, Alexander,” he drawled slowly, clearly taking great enjoyment in the blush that made his way on the other man’s face, “believe me when I tell you it was truly an absolute delight to have you grace us with your presence. And while I would very much like to keep you on air with us, I’m afraid I have to hang up. It’s with great regret though, I assure you.” 

Izzy didn’t listen to her brother’s answer, too busy trying to do everything he had said correctly, but she did see Magnus go back to the judges’ table. She heard Clary’s soft laugh again and struggled to not look up. She really wanted to do her best. 

\---

Izzy’s foot tapped the ground anxiously as she waited for the judges to finish talking about Helen’s admittedly quite skillful rendition of the cake. She knew her own wasn’t half as good, she wasn’t that blind to her own inaptitude, but she had done her absolute best. Plus, her flowers were really pretty, after she had used the right ingredients and methods to make them. 

Magnus walked up to her with Clary and Ragnor, a smile playing on his lips. The redhead next to him was smiling brightly and she waved slightly, her eyes shining happily. 

“Why don’t you show us what you did, Izzy,” she said with a nod of encouragement. 

Biting her lips with anticipation, Izzy let the cover that hid the cake drop. It wasn’t as tall as the original cake was, the colors were much too bright, the blue was too bright, the purple of the flowers wasn’t soft enough, the pink drops on the cake were both too large and too bright… But she was still proud of it. 

When the judges asked her about it, she said exactly that, and added, “I’ve never made a cake this pretty to be honest. It’s certainly not as pretty as that one over there, but it’s mine and I’m proud.” 

Clary smiled softly, “I think you’re right to be. It’s colorful, and you did your best to add the details. The flowers are beautiful! And I really like the colors as well. Not everything has to be the exact same. I think we could do with more difference.” 

“The colors are indeed quite the sight,” Magnus smiled. “A very interesting take on the Lillies.” 

“Not the worst thing we have seen on this show,” agreed Ragnor with a reluctant smile. 

After ordering all three contestants to cut a slice of their cake, the judges went back to their seats. Izzy carefully cut what she considered her best part and put it on the plate provided. At the same time as Helen and Aline, she brought the slice to the judge, placing it in front of Clary with a grin and a wink. The guest judge chuckled lightly, the light rosy color of her cheeks making her appear even prettier. 

Izzy grinned at Aline when they complemented her cake, and the woman returned her smile, accepting Helen’s gentle hand squeeze. Helen’s own cake was next, and the judges nodded, Ragnor going as far as to say it was one of the best cake they had had on the competitions this far, despite the very sparse frosting between layers. Then it was Izzy’s own turn. 

She clasped her hands together. She wasn’t expecting to win, that was a given at this point, but she at least wanted the judges to like her cake, or to not spit it out like her cupcake.

They did not spit it out immediately, but they went through a few complicated facial expressions, looking at each other a bit surprised. 

“Isabelle,” asked Ragnor, voice kind as he looked at her slice of cake. “Did you, by any chance, grab the flour instead of grabbing the cake mix at your disposition? It would explain why your cake is relatively bland. The frosting is not too bad, although it would have been better had it been mixed more.” 

Clary nodded on the other side of Magnus, “There is a definite lack of sugar in the cake, but it’s much better than in the first challenge! And your flowers are really pretty.” 

“It was definitely a good choice to call your handsome brother for advice on those beautiful flowers,” Magnus smiled. “And yes, the cake is missing some flavor, but it’s altogether a real improvement from the first task! You should be proud of yourself for what you’ve accomplished.” 

Izzy sighed a bit. She had wanted to do good, to present a cake people could actually eat for once, instead of a sugarless mess. But seeing Clary’s gentle smile cheered her up a bit. She had progressed quite a bit, even if she hadn’t managed to make a good cake just yet. If she just kept trying at home, she was sure she could do it. 

\---

After Helen’s victory, they all took a celebratory selfie and Izzy chatted a bit more with the other contestants, exchanging numbers with them both. Jace reached the set a few minutes after the cameras had stopped running and he smiled at her, taking in her own relaxed demeanor. 

“Sorry you didn’t win,” he said, squeezing her shoulder. 

She shrugged, “can’t win them all, right? And I’ll just keep cooking at home for you guys!” 

Jace grimaced but didn’t say anything, spotting Simon chatting with Clary a few meters away. “I’ll…” he waved vaguely in the other man’s direction, earning himself a grin from his sister, “I’ll go say goodbye.” 

She watched him walk resolutely to the brunette and grinned at Clary, waving at her. The redhead made her way to her quickly, smiling at the two others as they excused themselves. 

“Sorry for making you eat my cakes today,” Izzy said and winked. “Not usually the first impression I try to give to someone as beautiful as you, but the circumstances didn’t allow for a better one.” 

Clary laughed, “It was a very strong and memorable first impression, I would say. I wouldn’t mind getting to know you past the first impression though?” She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “If you want to, that is. Of course I would understand if this was all just for the show, I mean, it’s a thing that happens, contestants flirting with the judges for the camera, I would get it if—“ 

“No,” interrupted Izzy and winced as Clary’s eyes dimmed a bit with sadness, “I mean, no, this wasn’t just for show! Everything I said was honest, I swear. I would love to get to know you better too. Maybe with a date?” 

The other woman smiled brightly, her eyes twinkling again with the bright, happy light Izzy had found so enchanting all throughout the day. They exchanged numbers and, when Jace came back with a smug grin, Izzy kissed her cheek and promised to text her. 

They had barely left the studio that Izzy had already texted Clary, inviting her for a date the next day. 

“Good day overall.” Jace said as they walked up the street, his mouth stretched in the same wide smile as his sister. 

“Great day. The best day.” 

Still grinning, they walked back to their apartments, both content with the knowledge of their upcoming dates.

**Author's Note:**

> If anyone's curious, the inspiration for the dancer cupcake are Degas' Les Danseuses series ! 
> 
> Leave a kudos/comment if you liked the fic !


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